Tuesday, September 16, 2008

My Very Own Fashion Week in South Africa

So as I mentioned, I traded in the Bryant Park tents this season for a jaunt in the motherland. My usual recap of the NY shows will resume in February 2009. In the meantime though, I advise those of you who want a fresh perspective (beyond the celeb rehashing) of what went down during Fashion Week in NYC to check out Robin Givhan's blog here. She also covers the Paris and Milan shows. She didn't win that Pulitzer for nuthin' honey.

In the meantime though, I thought it would be cool to compare what I did in South Africa last week to what I would have been doing here in NY had I stayed home and share it with you. By the way, a post (or 2) on the trip itself is coming - I'm still uploading photos and getting my life back in order. *sigh*

THE TOP THREE WAYS SPRING 2009 NY FASHION WEEK IS MORE LIKE SOUTH AFRICA THAN I THOUGHT...

1 - I always do a lot of people watching at the shows. What folks are wearing in the tents and the off-site venues is practically as important as what they are wearing on the runway.

1b - I did a whole lot of people watching on my vacay. From the time I left JFK (the airline stewardesses on S.A. Airways were rocking these funky scaves) to the moment I boarded my last flight in Jo'burg.

2 - Everyone at the shows was buzzing about the upcoming election I'm sure. Really, how could they not?

2b - I had no less than three in-depth convos with native South Africans about Obama. It reminded me how much the rest of this world is watching and are anticipating November 4th as much (perhaps more) as we are.

3 - For me, going to the shows is obviously about trend spotting for the next season but it is also a way to get inspired about well...everything. Runway is typically driven by fantasy (things are scaled down considerably for retail) and after viewing a few shows I get all sorts of ideas on everything from how to decorate my kitchen to trying out a new haircolor.

3b - While Cape Town was certainly the more cosmopolitan part of my trip (Madison Avenue has nothing on the V&A Waterfront), I was styilshly inspired by the safari and game reserve leg of my journey as well. God makes no mistakes and the way colors and textures blend and contrast with each other in nature is brillant. Not even the best trend forecasters could pull it off. It is no coincidence that designers are always claiming to get inspiration for their collections from "the bush", huh?

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What Is People.Places.Things All About?

Trendy is short,Fashion is long,Style is forever.

I don’t know who to attribute the above quote to, but dang if it ain’t true. It’s exactly why I named my blog People.Places.Things. Style is bigger than gray being the new black or flats being all the rage in Milan. Style can certainly encompass those things but it’s also the type of stationery you choose to write on, the restaurants you dine in and why you’d rather stay in a bed & breakfast over a Holiday Inn.

From random musings on those fierce hat wearing church ladies we all adore to "breaking news" updates on your favorite boutique or designer -- it's all here at PPT. So whether you're a frequent guest or just passing through, I hope you are moved by something. Don't forget to leave a comment if you are (or aren't).

About Me

I’m a bit late with the whole blogging phenomenon - I am notorious for having delayed reactions. Hopefully, this outlet will further help me hone my skills as a writer, release some tension and provide y’all with some good reading every now and again.